Those that Dream
by DarkRemorse
Summary: Tome, an average student, starts experiencing odd dreams and nightmares of the strangest places and eerie scenes. Each night, someone dies in these dreams, and each night, he hears a voice calling out to him. Is there something he can't remember?
1. Prequel

It had been done again. Harrison always confused Tome, saying he loved him but yet he would leave him alone around midnight to suffer those terrible tremors. The pain of his transformation was just too much to bear alone. The thirst he felt racked his entire being with a tremendous pain.

Just as he always did around that time, Tome rested in a broken down house, hunched over in one of the far corners. It hadn't been too long ago since Harrison had kept him company. Two hours at most? That had to be all. The poor boy was sure he could still feel his master's presence.

"H-Harris-sama...?"

His raspy voice crackled slightly as he gasped for air in-between syllables. Tears had started falling gently against Tome's pasty skin as realization sunk in. Harrison had left.

Even though the demon did this to the seventeen year-old every night, it still ate away at his heart, leaving him void inside. He had chosen this life, the life of a damned creature, just to be with the person he loved. Yet, every night, Tome would be reminded of his fate, of his falling dreams.

"A nightmare-eater?"

Tome's emerald eyes swirled with confusion, hearing the strange man speak of his species.

"You really are wanting me to explain, then?"

The twenty-three year old huffed, a small scowl on his lips. He had promised the boy to tell him his secret if he didn't ask anymore questions, yet here he was pushing further. Harrison crossed his arms, waiting for the answer.

"O-oh...no. Yo-you don't...you don't have to explain any further!"

Tome quickly responded, gulping deeply. The man in front of him had a quick temper, and if his wishes were dishonored, all hell was sure to break loose.

A sigh escaped Harrison's pale lips, "Whatever. I'll explain, but just this once!"

He tried to sound stern, and almost angry, but failed to hide the slight kindness that had lavished its way upon his words. Tome lit up instantly, a large grin spreading across his tan face. He would actually be told something about this man, about the man that his heart had latched onto.

"Th-thank you!"

"Don't thank me, idiot."

"S-sorry...Ha-Harris."

"A-and, don't call me that!"

Things always carried on like this, even after Tome had learned of the terrible truth the man beside him held. He wasn't human, but a creature that consumed nightmares and human life.

Harrison made sure to explain each detail with precision. The hunger that these creatures felt, one that rivaled a vampire's thirst for blood, and their exact methods of feasting. Once a human fell asleep, they were easy targets. This was when a nightmare-eater filled the victim's head with terrible visions, most were morbid and involved death.

The human, however, never woke up. In these nightmares, they would meet a cloaked figure, presumably the demon. Soon enough, their soul would be drained, the nightmare around them closing its firm grasp for all eternity. These demons could only eat the nightmares they caused, also taking the humans soul whether they needed it or not.

Tome, however, hadn't feared Harrison after this. He had actually admired him even more. The lone fellow had kept a social status ranking, despite the horrors he had to face each and every night. So amazing, the boy had once thought.

That was four years ago, only a few months after they had first met.

Tome's gasping had grown louder as one of his shaky hands tightened on his own shirt.

"H-Harris...on..."

Why wouldn't he let him feast, as well? The seventeen year-old didn't want to become a murderer, but he didn't want to feel this pain, either. A horrid scream poured out of his throat as another shock wave of hunger pierced him.

The man he loved, and supposedly the one that loved him back, let this pain consume him each night? One would think this to be an unforgivable act. Tome was too forgiving at times.

More memories had begun swirling in his mind, trying to ease the pain with happier times, times of his mortal life.

"Why did you come here?! I told you to stay away!"

Harrison's voice filled the empty room quickly as Tome entered his vision.

"I...I...w-wanted to ma-make sure...you we-were o-okay..."

"I don't give a damn! When I tell you to stay put, you'd better listen!"

Tome only nodded, feeling tears push past his eyelids. He had interfered with Harrison's meal once again. But, this time, he was sure the man would be forgiving. After all, Harrison's target had been Tome's younger sibling. No one could be that heartless, could they?

An aggravated cough arose from Harrison as he swiftly started up the rotting stairs, each adding a loud creak to the silence.

"Your human emotions...didn't really vanish, did they?"

Tome finally spoke, fearing the worst as soon as he realized what he had done.

Harrison gripped the side railing tightly, his knuckles loosing the small traces of color they had left.

"You want to hear about emotions again?!"

"O-of course! You act like you don't have any, but I know you do! Yo-you...you're really kind and gentle, I k-know you are!"

"Kind? Gentle?"

Harrison fell silent, a shroud of mist enveloping his body. Within seconds, he had appeared behind the boy, bearing his long fangs.

"Shall I show you my true self, then?! Kind and gentle? Don't make me laugh!"

Fear had held Tome in place for the first time since he met his unusual friend. Cold hands had locked in place around the poor boy's throat as his back hit a nearby wall. Was this it? Had Harrison finally snapped? Tears rolled down his cheeks rapidly now, his entire body shaking.

"Just as I thought. You try to hide it, but the fear's still there. Leave, at once."

Harrison spoke unusually calm, releasing Tome slowly. The boy, of course, crumbled as he hit the ground softly. His legs had buckled underneath him as soon as the older man's hands weren't supporting him.

Harrison started toward the stairs again, a small frown nestled on his lips.

"W-wait...please...pl-please wait...!" Tome tried to yell out, but it barely grew above a whisper. Something was holding his volume back. He knew it had to be his fear. There was nothing left to do, nothing left to say that would make that man stay with him.

He hadn't cared that Harrison was a demon, or that he had recently resorted to attacking Tome's family. There had to be a reason behind that, Tome was sure.

The hope for pleasant thoughts had collapsed as something from two years ago was brought up. Of all the things to think of now, why had he uncovered that? Tome was now resting against the moistened ground, scratching at the stone floor below him with a few rocks he managed to gather.

He had never learned of the reasons for either the attacks on himself and his family. Tome felt sure he never would.

As another shot of pain subsided, he closed his eyes again. As if a demon could result to dreaming to end his eternal suffering. He knew all too well that more flashbacks were to come.

It had been several weeks since Tome lost track of Harrison's where abouts when his entire family was killed on the same night. They slept soundly through the night, unaware that they would never wake to the sun's light again.

Once the news was brought to the unfortunate boy, he cried. For days on end, he cried through sleepless nights, saying or eating nothing. These tears weren't all for the loved ones he had lost, but for the loved one he was sure he was gaining again. Harrison.

Tome, losing sight of complete reality, finally went to sleep. Not because he was over what had happened, but because he was hoping that the older man would visit him, as well.

Nightmares did visit him, indeed. His sleep was nothing like he had ever imagined while listening to Harrison's descriptions. There was no light, only the darkest shadows one would hope to never meet.

It was filled with mazes that only ended in dead ends, the smell of blood hanging thick in the fogged air. The crimson liquid dripped from an unknown source above as the boy continued hearing soft voices calling him further and further.

At last, he turned a corner, finding himself on a dingy version of the street where he first met Harrison. Had he just been sleep walking? How Tome wished for this to be true.

"H-Harrison...?" He called, trying his best to peer through the dark mist.

A figure stood humped over in one of the alley corners, sobs echoing around him. The volume was low, but just enough to catch Tome's attention. The figure was cloaked, and he linked this to Harrison's description quite quickly.

"Th-there...there you a-are!"

He ran over to the figure, latching onto the cloth tightly. However, as the hood fell, a wrinkled face appeared before him.

The cheek bones were high, and looked like they were pointy enough to puncture the fragile skin covering them. The man's nose was crooked, but pointed downward toward his yellowed teeth and golden fangs. His eyes were a dull gray color, set closely together and fixed upon the frame of the young boy.

Slowly, a bony hand latched onto Tome's shoulders tightly, the long and pointed fingernails digging through the soft meat until blood began dripping from the fresh wounds.

"Harrison? I don't know a Harrison, boy."

The voice was low, but high-pitched. It held the same effect on someone's ears as scratching on a chalkboard did. Tome flinched, closing his eyes tightly from pain. This truly was it then, huh? Tome thought.

He felt sharp nails travel across his face and down his throat, where they began digging deeply. He opened his eyes widely, gasping for air.

Tome's heart beat sped up, echoing around the darkness that had replaced the fake setting. His entire body was burning, and he was sure his skin was melting at one point.

The man's claws had reached the boy's heart, now traveling across the outer-shell of Tome's most valuable organ.

"I've never tried tasting human before. Shall we?"

Tome could only gasp in pain as the claws closed around his heart, tugging at it as a constant pain racked his body. Blood had surrounded him, soaking him completely. With one final tug, he felt something snap, the pain too much for him to remain conscious.

Within seconds, he had fell dead, his raspy gasping no longer filling the air. The stench of blood had grown as the crooked man glanced at the beating heart in his hand. "What a feat. I wonder what this will do for me?"

Tome awoke in a flash, a hand jumping to the side of his chest where his heart rested. It remained silent, as it had the day he awoke from that hellish nightmare. He had no recollection after passing out...after dieing in his dream. Well, until he had awoken, that is.

He scooted back toward the wall, the tears now dry and no longer falling from his dull eyes. Realization had continued pounding against his pain forsaken head. Harrison had left. Harrison had abandoned him. Harrison was only lying about loving him.

How could one believe in such false truths when he was left to die every night? Tome didn't care about becoming a murderer anymore. He just wanted to feast. He just wanted to be with Harrison every second he could.

"H-Harris…Harrison-sama…"

For a moment, his mind went blank. He couldn't recall anything. Not the name of his master, not the past and not any of his flashbacks. At the same time, the pain halted, no longer ripping its way through the seventeen year-old body. Tome's eyes darted from each side of the abandoned house, looking more confused than ever.

"W-why…am I here?"

"You're here because you needed to escape the rain. That is all."

Harrison's voice spoke up, as the gloomy man approached the boy. He had been waiting nearby, never having left. It was evident that he had been crying over something. However, Tome would never learn the reason.

Tome jumped back, "I…I see."

"If you…wouldn't mind, p-please be on your way. The storm has passed."

The boy could tell something was wrong with the older man, but decided it would be best if he didn't push into a stranger's business. Especially one that looked this creepy. Tome was sure the man couldn't have been crying from sadness, but maybe slight madness? He nodded, that was it. The older man must have been insane.

"R-right…"

Tome scurried over to the nearby door, only giving a small glance back. There was no way he would stay in this house another second. He had no clue how he got there, or even who the man was, but he certainly knew what he was going to do, now. Vanish.

"Goodbye…Tome. Please, I beg of you to forgive me…"

The boy tilted his head, watching Harrison now. That man was definitely crazy.

"Well…even if you did something, I'll forgive you, mister. Please don't be upset."

"…Y-yeah. Thank you…for everything."

Tome only offered a quick nod before hurrying out into the dampened streets. A strange feeling of freedom lifted up from within him, something he hadn't expected. He didn't know why he was feeling so light and cheery, but only that he was glad to be feeling this way. It was a change from the eternal sleep he was sure he had endured.

Having no clue where to go, or exactly who he was, himself, the boy decided to search. He would search for the missing links in his mind, as well as the missing links in his heart. No matter how long it would take, he was positive he would find something.


	2. Chapter One

It hadn't taken but a few minutes for the warm sunny day to simmer down into a cloudy mess. The low clouds now blotched the blue sky out in several places, a chilly wind picking up here and there.

Despite these turn of events, the city people continued lurking about the streets; too busy with their own lives to even bother with the weather's decision to take a turn for the worse. But that was how things went in this city. People rushed too and fro, not bothering to glance at the darker, chaotic places that they only pretended didn't exist.

Further down one of those crowded streets, if one took a small trip toward the old side of the city, they would come across an old brick path. The bricks, now cracked and molded over, served as the pathway to mystery.

At the end of the path rested two large, iron gates that looked to be kept in an almost pristine condition compared to the rest of the old city wing. They stood, looking almost like large guards that had only transformed into that form to keep out unwanted guests. This was true, to some degree.

As the wind picked up, the chains binding the inner metal poles together began shaking violently, only further adding to the loud creaking the gates had been making since the weather changed.

It was only after a brief silence appeared that the virgin sound of footsteps began winding closer and closer to the foreboding iron.

The boy, still in his fleece night wear, looked panicked and rushed, as if something had only spooked him in his current direction. His breathing was heavy, almost too unnatural to even consider the seventeen year old a human. His dull irises were both almost blocked out by his dilated pupils that were currently darting from side to side.

He came to an abrupt halt, head dashing wildly at his surroundings. He froze instantly as his icy blue eyes caught sight of something that wasn't there at all.

"D-don't...don't come any cl-closer!" he yelled, taking several steps back. "P-pl-please...l-leave me al-alone...!"

His pleading sobs continued before a gasp took away what almost seemed to be his last breath. Tears welled up in his eyes as he began scratching at his throat.

The estranged boy fell back several feet from his original standing place, his throat now red and held the print of large hands. He turned over quickly, crawling toward the gates that had chosen to continue their eerie song of despair.

"P-please...please...please..."

The boy chanted, coughing as his shaky hands grasped the bars of the gates with enough strength to drain the small amount of color from his already pale hands.

It was then, in that very moment when his hands made contact with the cold iron, did the lock begin giving off a clicking noise. He brought his fear-grasped face upright, hoping that this would be his chance to escape.

Quickly, he steadied himself on his feet before shaking the gates brutally.

"O-open damn it, open!" he yelled, shooting a glance over his shoulder. He stood dumb-founded, hands falling to his sides.

"Heh..." a strange smile spread across the boy's lips, "Hehehehehehehehe...!"

The creepy laughter that emitted from his lips was pure insanity, the boy throwing his head back as the fit continued. Once again he drew in what seemed to be his last breath, however, the laughter continued.

Several minutes passed, silence slowly sliding back upon the path. At the same time, the boy's body had become limp, now propped against the iron that still stood strong. Blood dripped down from the teenager's mouth as the clicking of the locks grew louder.

Click. Click. One minute. Click. Two.

The gate flung open, the boy's body hitting the ground with a thud.

Keiji's eyes flung open as he threw off the large blankets that covered him. He was sweating profusely, his heart beating at a shocking pace.

His green eyes darted about the darkened room, as if searching for some signs of what he had just saw in his mind.

"A...a dr-dream...?" He stuttered, trying to calm his breathing. Keiji's eyes slowly fell upon the digital alarm clock that rested beside his bed. The green numbers didn't soothe him as he hoped they would.

A neon green twelve o'clock flashed on and off, as if there had been a power surge or the clock had been unplugged recently. The shaken boy sighed, lowering his head back against the damp pillow. He had school tomorrow. There really was no time to be worrying over silly things like nightmares.

He turned, facing away from the clock now. The flashing numbers had become an annoyance.

Time passed slowly. Five minutes, at first. Then ten, then twenty, then half an hour. Keiji still sat with his eyes wide open, unable to fall back asleep. Was it the nightmare that had scared him this much? His thoughts continued wandering back to the weird pathway, to the frantic boy who looked oddly familiar.

There was something about that boy that struck him as odd. Sure Keiji knew nightmares and dreams could fall to the weird side at times, but something just didn't sit right with him this time. What was it that the boy had been running from? And why had he stopped instantly in his last few seconds of life?

Before too long, the first signs of morning began pouring through his curtained window. Keiji sighed, turning to face the small rays of light.

"Maybe...I'm just over-thinking things..." he said, sitting up slowly. "Either way...today's going to be awful."

He yawned, striding over to his closet. He wasn't sure how much sleep he had gotten, but he was damned sure that it wasn't more than three hours.

After a few minutes of procrastinating, Keiji was ready and combing through his messy black hair. He ignored the dark circles under his eyes, still unable to leave the thoughts that had bound him to the bed a bit earlier.


End file.
